In the house and caverns, the air around me felt calm and quiet, but here in the field I could feel the ether sea swirling with energy. The hairs on the back of my neck stood up. We were not alone… I felt the spirits hovering around me, clambering for my attention.
Gage watched me, seeming to sense my uneasiness. “It’s true that the demon ate all the souls back at the mine and in the town, but I didn’t let the creature come near this field.” He gestured widely with his arm. “This was an old battlefield. Many men died and spilled a lot of blood on this very land hundreds of years ago.” His eyes gleamed. “I swear I can feel the violence from those glorious battles still vibrating through the air.” When I didn’t say anything, he continued. “You can’t bind spirits without spirits.” He gave a laugh. “There are plenty of them here. All I need you to do, Colina, is what you did before. Reach out and touch the bodies. Bind a spirit to each one.”
I had hoped for a longer reprieve—hoped it would take time to perfect his mummies. I turned away from the corpse, trying to think of any excuse that he would accept. “I…I can’t.”
His right hand shot out and grabbed my arm. His fingers clamped down hard as he pulled me toward him until I was only inches away from his face. “You know what I need you to do, so be a good girl and do as you’re told.” He let go of my arm and gave me a wide smile, shifting back into an amiable facade. “I promise you’ll be rewarded tonight when Luke is finally in a body of his own.”
I rubbed my arm and looked over at Caleb. I could tell by the expression on his face that he was enjoying the show.
I looked down at the body in the bag before me and gasped in sudden recognition. It was the woman from the Guivre Guild magic shop. Her eyes were shut, and she looked peaceful, as though she were just sleeping.
I dropped to my knees. This is wrong, this is so wrong. My mind and body were screaming at me to run, to get out of there as fast as I could, but instead of running I took a deep breath and forced my hands out. All I had to do was touch the body. I’d done it many times before.
My hands paused in midair as I remembered the plan I’d made. I looked back at Gage. “I’ll do it…if you promise to let Dean go.”
Gage frowned, and his eyes narrowed. “You think you can negotiate with me?”
“Unless you promise not to hurt Dean…I won’t do it.” I sat back on my heels, squaring my shoulders and trying not to show my fear, but my hands trembled. I gripped them tight together, placing them firmly in my lap. “I don’t care if you hurt me, or even if you kill me. If I don’t have your word that you will not harm Dean, my cooperation ends here.”
Gage’s eyes glowed an unearthly red. “I don’t like ultimatums.”
My words came out in a whisper. “I can’t let you hurt him. I won’t let you kill him.”
Gage watched me in silence for a long while.
My heart beat rapidly in my chest. What kind of magic does Gage have? What will he do to me?
Gage looked up into the sky and I followed his glance. Dark clouds had rolled in and the moon had disappeared. The trees on the edge of the field were whipping back and forth, dancing in the harsh wind. I felt a drop of rain hit my cheek.
Gage wiped a raindrop off his hand. His voice was eerily calm. “It seems we are at an impasse. All right… You win this round. Now, I need you to get the bodies bound before it starts to pour. The last thing we need is for the natron to wash away.”
I hadn’t realized I’d been holding my breath while waiting for his answer. I half expected him to pull out a knife and kill me on the spot for my impudence. “Give me your word that you won’t harm Dean,” I demanded in a burst of suspicion, forcing my voice to be strong.
He laughed this time. “You have my word, Colina. I won’t harm a hair on Dean’s precious head. He will have to stay with us a little longer, but once he can no longer harm my plans, I will let him go.”
For one brief moment, I felt a sense of relief. Dean will be safe. And then dread replaced the relief.
I had work to do.
Gage wouldn’t be happy until spirits filled all the bodies in the field. I turned back to the corpse and reached out, and my fingers grazed across cold skin. There was a now-familiar explosion within me, an orange light that seemed to radiate from the very depths of my being and race up through my limbs. Caleb and Gage’s eyes grew wider as the orange energy burst out from me and whizzed like fireworks into the air all around us.
I murmured the words that would bind the spirit and watched with a sick feeling in my stomach as the woman’s body in the bag began to sit up.
It opened its mouth and a voice I recognized raised the hairs on the back of my neck. “I knew you could do it, girly! If I followed you long enough, I knew you’d figure out how to give me a body that would last.”
Wanda? Somehow her spirit followed me here. Wanda—a spirit determined to live again. I noticed suddenly that, of all of the zombies I’d raised, Wanda was the only one able to talk. What made her special?
She found me near a death dealer cemetery. Maybe she was one of Luke’s ancestors—a death dealer with power over the dead and an understanding of the rules that govern life and death. That cemetery held some of the Phoenix Guild’s strongest ancestors.
Wanda continued to chatter on about how good it was to be back, and how lovely it felt to be in a body—she was seemingly oblivious to the stunned audience. But then she lowered her voice so that only I could hear over the roar of the wind. “I killed those nasty mages for you, didn’t I? I am going to be your best ally, girly. I’m someone you can depend on, and someday you are going to figure out how to put me in a breathing, blood-pumping, heart-beating body.”
Wha—? My mouth opened, but I had no idea what to say. Her words were such a surprise, such a shock, that I was speechless.
Gage motioned to some men who were standing nearby. One of them came over and pushed Wanda down while the other man zipped the bag closed.
I could see Wanda struggling within the bag. Her feet kicked and her arms struck out, but the bag held. I could hear Wanda’s muffled voice coming from the bag, protesting that she wasn’t fighting back and didn’t need to be treated this way.
Gage waved his hand and the two men picked up the body bag, carrying it across the field. He watched their retreating forms. “It’s not an ideal situation, but for now I need them to stay put. We can stuff them and then set them free once they dry.”
Another drop of rain hit my face.
“My dear, I don’t mean to rush you, but you really do need to hurry,” Gage said.
I forced myself up. My knees were trembling. I felt weak as I stumbled to the next body and dropped down. I reached out and unzipped the bag. My fingers touched the skin of the dead and I raised another mummy. I did it again and again, and when the last dead body sat up, filled with a new spirit, the sky opened up and the light sprinkling of raindrops changed into a torrent of water.
I was only half aware of strong hands grabbing me. Someone hoisted me up into their arms and carried me through the field to the edge of the forest.
I could see lights twinkling from within the trees.
Gage spoke, and I could see the outline of his body in front of me. “Because of the rain, I moved the party into the forest. The trees will give us some added shelter from the storm.”
It was then I realized it was Caleb who was carrying me. “Put me down!” I shouted, struggling to free myself.
Without a word, Caleb dropped me directly into a mud puddle.
“Son of a—” I screeched. When I looked up at Caleb, he shrugged his shoulders and turned away, but not before I saw the smile on his face.
Gage didn’t seem to notice Caleb’s ill treatment of me. Or, if he did, he let it pass without comment. Gage stopped and looked back at me, then turned around, reached down, and offered me his hand.
I ignored his offer of help and instead forced myself to my feet. I was soaked to the skin. Water plastered my hair against my
face, and mud covered my jeans. I felt sore, bruised, exhausted, and cold.
“Come, my dear, the others are waiting,” Gage said as he started walking into the trees.
“Coming, princess?” Caleb asked as he started after Gage.
I looked back at the field. I could make out people moving in the wavering firelight. They were carrying the bags away. As I watched, the rain slowly put out the fires and threw the field back into darkness.
I headed off into the woods, picking up my pace until I caught up with Gage. “What’s happening to the zombies I raised so far?”
“They’re falling apart—completely useless. But I think this time we’ll be successful. I can feel it in my bones.”
There was a large open-walled tent set up between the trees. Lanterns hung down from black chains at each corner of the shelter. There were a couple dozen people inside. They all turned in unison as we approached. When I stepped inside, the bodies parted to reveal a gray boulder in the center of the tent. The boulder’s surface sparkled with crystals, and the top of it was perfectly flat. Next to it stood a black candelabra decorated with a half-dozen red candles, their flames flickering in the wind.
It was then I saw two bodies on the ground in front of the boulder.
My heart lurched in my chest, and I pushed my way through the crowd, not caring whether I dirtied anyone with my mud-covered clothing. Don’t be Dean, don’t be Wendy. I didn’t want to look. I didn’t want to see a familiar face laying on the ground before me.
I looked down into the faces of two complete strangers.
They were boys my age. Their eyes were closed and their hands crossed over their bodies as though they were dead, but I could see their chests slowly rising and falling. They were alive.
Gage came up next to me. “Now, then. You have two bodies to choose from. If they are not to your liking, let me know, and I will rustle up another one. I want to please you.”
I stared at him in horror, unable to keep the shock off my face. “I…don’t understand.”
“Come, come, you have to have a say. I want you to be happy. Which one pleases you?” Gage pointed to the dark-haired boy on the left. “How about this one? He’s a handsome fellow.” When I didn’t answer, he pointed to the other. “Hmm, maybe you’ve had your fill of brunettes? This one has golden hair—the color, I’m told, of Luke’s.”
I looked at Gage as though he’d gone mad.
Then, the image of Dean sitting motionless in a wheelchair in the asylum slid across my mind. Didn’t you do the same thing, Colina? sneered a mean voice in my head. Didn’t you once venture out looking for a body Luke could possess?
The smile left Gage’s face; he looked annoyed. “I insist you pick.”
The boys on the ground before me were empty vessels chosen by Gage for the ritual. Had he found them? Or had he done something to push out the souls that used to occupy the bodies? I shoved the sickening thought away. I’d been looking for a spell to transfer Luke’s spirit into another body for so long, but until this moment I’d honestly never thought about the new body Luke would take over. Up until now, it had been a distant, abstract concept, and now, as I looked down at the boys, I realized what this all meant. Luke will jump into one of these boys. Soon one of them will sit up, and Luke will be inside him. Luke would hold me in his arms, but I would once again be looking into the face of a stranger.
And if it worked, would Luke be safe inside another body? Then what could Gage use against me?
As if reading my thoughts, Gage said, “I can still hurt them. Luke, your friends…they live or die at my whim. Never forget it. Now pick.”
I took a deep breath and pointed to the blond-haired, fair-skinned boy, looking down into his face. His eyes were closed. I wondered what color they were.
Soon I will look into those eyes and see Luke staring back at me.
My knees buckled and my stomach lurched. I couldn’t believe this was happening. Both hope and terror filled me.
Mildred was suddenly beside me. She wore a long black dress. Her white hair hung free, swinging gently back and forth as she moved. She put her hand on my arm. “You look ill. Do you want to sit down?
I shook off her hand. “Don’t touch me.”
She gave me a small smile.
“Mildred is the one you should be thanking, Colina. She helped me find the spell. She’s not your enemy,” Gage said. He motioned to the blond-haired boy and two men moved forward, picked him up, and laid him on top of the boulder.
“I hope that by giving you what you want most in the world, you’ll realize I’m on your side,” Mildred whispered.
I was speechless. She betrayed us. She made us prisoners, and she thinks I’ll believe she’s on my side?
Someone handed Gage a small, black leather-bound book. He flipped it open. “Don’t worry, my dear. If this spell doesn’t work, we’ve found a couple others to try. We’ll keep looking until we find a way to transfer Luke into an appropriate body.”
That’s when I saw Dean—no, Luke. He was standing between Caleb and Jacob. His eyes met mine and he leaped forward, but Caleb and Jacob grabbed him and pulled him back. No chains bound his hands. There was no collar around his neck.
The collar was off.
Hope flashed through me. This was our chance to make a stand. To fight and try to escape. I started toward him, but Mildred held me in place. “Don’t do anything rash, child.”
My eyes wandered to the death dealers surrounding us, and my optimism immediately sank away. There were too many of them. It would be madness to try and escape now.
Luke looked at the body on the boulder, and then his eyes swung back at me. “Colina, don’t let them go through with it! This was wrong the first time you brought me back—it’s wrong this time, too,” he shouted.
I knew Luke thought this was wrong. We’d argued about it before, when he’d first possessed Dean’s body. But I wasn’t strong enough to let him go. I couldn’t meet Luke’s eyes and turned my face away.
Mildred moved to the boulder. She bent down and picked up a black bowl lying at its base. She dipped her finger into the bowl and painted something on the boy’s forehead and arms. When she finished, a sudden wind roared through the tent. All the candles went out. The only light shining now was from the lanterns swinging wildly in the strong breeze.
Gage started to recite out of the book, and as his words rang out, I could hear the hollow echo of rain slowly pattering on the canvas tent above us.
My eyes went back to Luke, who was struggling fervently. Caleb and Jacob brought him to the base of the boulder.
Gage stopped reciting the spell and turned to Mildred. “Tell her she’ll have to make sure that only Luke’s soul jumps into the body. She’ll need to concentrate and use all her power to keep the other souls at bay.”
That’s when I comprehended that he was talking about me. Mildred moved quickly to my side. Before I could say anything, she grabbed my arm and pulled me forward. The old woman was stronger than she looked. I stumbled until I was standing before the boulder.
I looked over at Luke, who glared at me, pleading with his eyes to stop this ritual. We were only an arm’s length away from each other. I started to reach for him when the old woman slapped my hand back.
“Whatever you do, don’t touch him,” she said to me while gesturing at the boy. When I didn’t respond, she gave me a hard pinch. “Do you hear me? Colina, you can’t touch him!”
I looked down at my hands. “What am I supposed to do?”
Mildred’s voice took on a smooth tone. “Concentrate. Can you feel the energy around you?”
I could feel Luke’s eyes burning into me, but I refused to meet them. I knew he wanted me to stop. He didn’t want me to go through with the spell, but this would help fix everything. Luke would be in his own body. This was what we had been hoping for, what I had been working toward. Luke would realize when it was all over that it was the right decision.
Mildred hissed, “Concentra
te. This is important. You must focus your whole being on the spirits around you.”
“Colina, don’t do it,” Luke begged me. “I want to be with you, but this…this goes against the laws of nature.”
I didn’t look at him. Instead, I turned all of my attention to the space above his head. The air between us began to vibrate with energy.
“Good. Good,” Mildred whispered.
Gage started to speak again and the wind picked up outside.
“Now sense the spirits around you. That’s it.” Mildred’s hand came up and rested on my arm. “The spirits–can you feel them?”
I can. I felt ghostly fingers slide along my arm. I heard whispers glide past my ears.
“Now call them to you. You want them to swarm around you so they’ll leave the boy alone.” Mildred moved closer and said in a soft voice, “Imagine you’re the flame—the light in the darkness—and the souls are seeking out light. They’re like moths attracted to a burning candle. That’s it,” she said as I felt her move away from me.
Gage’s words got louder, and mist began to form in the trees nearest to the tent, curling around their branches and drifting our way.
Mildred’s voice called out, “Concentrate, Colina. Keep the spirits focused on you.”
I had never before felt so much energy around me. It bounced off my skin. It was as if the air was thick, like water. I could hear voices babbling close by. Ghost faces appeared in front of me.
Suddenly I felt claustrophobic—like an invisible crowd stood around me. Unseen hands reached out and grabbed my hair. Fingers pulled on my clothes. I cried out in surprise, stumbling farther back from the boulder and putting distance between myself and the others.
Gage shouted a word that rang out in the air and a bright light flashed around the boy and Luke.
And then there was silence. What was that? I looked over at Gage. He stood behind Luke with a dagger in his hand. What is he doing? He raised it and I screamed out Luke’s name. My nightmare was coming true. Gage was going to go back on his word—he was going to kill Luke and there was nothing I could do to stop him. I couldn’t lose him again, couldn’t be alone.
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